Stormers-Bulls clash to light up Los Angeles

WESTERN PROVINCE Rugby Union president Thelo Wakefield says he’s excited to treat the “growing number of faithful” in the United States to the Stormers brand of rugby when they play the Bulls in a Super Rugby pre-season clash in Los Angeles next year.

Although the fixture on February 3 will not be an official Super Rugby encounter, the US will get its first taste of the southern-hemisphere competition when the South African rivals take part in a curtain-raiser for the date between the US Eagles and an Argentina XV at StubHub Center – which forms part of the Americas Rugby Championship.

“The Stormers are one of the best supported franchises in Rugby Union and we are very excited to be able to showcase our brand, team, athletes and style of play, to the growing number of faithful in the United States,” Wakefield said.

Western Province Rugby Group chief executive, Paul Zacks also said that the warm-up game is a great opportunity to “share the success of the Stormers team and brand”.

“This is a great opportunity to share the success of the Stormers team and brand with a new and growing market. The world is continuously becoming a smaller place, so exploring new and growing areas of the game forms part of our vision, as we strive to become a truly high-performance organisation with global appeal,” Zacks said.

Super Rugby chief executive Andy Marinos shared the excitement around Super Rugby’s US debut.

“Super Rugby is one of the premier club rugby competitions in the world, spanning 15 time zones and five countries.” said Marinos.

“Even though this is a pre-season match, we are excited that rugby fans in the United States will get the opportunity to enjoy and witness Super Rugby first hand.”